What Happened to the Perfect Child? | Full Episode | Forensic Files

foreign [Music] how old were you when you were adopted I was nine and that's what I wanted
I want to feel loved and I want a family [Music] I wanted a lot of children you see your friends having children and
you try and you can't it was difficult when we finally learned that we were going to be able to go over
to Russia and pick up a little boy and girl of our own it was just a tremendous event and we were very excited
we had seen pictures of the children and they were beautiful [Music] how did the agency describe currently a
wonderful outgoing intelligent little girl loved to be around all ages of children and desperately looking for
parents was that an accurate description no it was not no [Music] after we returned home we would see her
staring off into the distance blankly in a trance-like state she started to stand
over our bed at night wake up and she'd be right over my face there was a coldness in her and an anger
and just a distance she became someone I didn't know at all I mean at all Carolee began stealing everything in the
house she stole all my jewelry our knives were disappearing she would do things like putting a kitten in the
middle of a pack of dogs cruel type behavior and then she snapped and tried to kill Joshua she had him in
her hands and was going to throw him over the deck she had him yes yes over the side here yes and I just
started screaming put him down Carolee put him down what are what are you doing kill him
I called the psychiatrist what am I going to do you know what what did we do she's becoming violent doctor there was
no question in your mind that Carolee is a very troubled little girl no there's no question in my mind about it at all
this child I would consider to be a homicide risk she's been on all kinds of medication
and none of it has worked we've had cameras installed and we've had alarms installed on her doors
you know I don't know what the solution is what am I going to do [Music] I'm gonna get you the best help we can
okay I did not try to kill my brother I love him Oh My Darling I've done many stories during the course
of my career but this was one that that really stuck with me you want to rescind
the adoption we feel like we tried everything it hit me in my heart so you plan on taking
Carolee back to Russia yes yes I felt helpless leaving her behind I didn't know what would become of her
you're a strong girl strong girl you're gonna be fine okay don't cry [Music] thank you
[Music] oh Joshua I don't see him Mama [Music] more than two decades ago an American
couple adopted this little girl from Russia 30 seconds ago he was terrified of her they soon came to believe she was
dangerous hurry even capable of murder you take care okay you're strong I was with them when they brought her back to
Russia and left her covering the story changed my life and left me steeped in a haunting mystery
that began when the couple first arrived in Moscow hoping to find the perfect child
I think it's innate in every woman to want to be a good parent to have children and to share your life
[Music] there's Crystal she's tired often comments would be made about well when
are you gonna have children it was hard we thought this is going to be a wonderful Journey
Moscow 1997. Crystal and Jesse we agreed not to use their last name are both 30 and have
tried for years to have a child of their own it was something we really wanted to
do we wanted to parent we really wanted a house full far away from home they're finally about to become parents we
really wanted to give a child an opportunity adoptive parents I was adopted myself I know the benefits that
adoption can bring they found their daughter on an adoption agency's webpage posted on the internet she was a
beautiful child for them she was the perfect child a blonde blue-eyed nine-year-old we thought you know this
is an older child we can give a normal life before leaving for Russia the adoption agency gave them the little
girls medical records the agency described Carolee as a wonderful outgoing intelligent little girl who is
charming to be around you understood though that adopting an older child carries certain risks absolutely certain
risks [Music] they took an eight-hour train ride from Moscow to an orphanage in the small town
of borovichi they already paid nearly thirty thousand dollars to make all the necessary
arrangements and the child they called Carolee was anxiously awaiting their arrival she looked in my eyes very
warmly you're my mama she called you a mama she didn't from the very beginning my American mama she said at the
orphanage the couple would not only adopt Carolee they also found her a baby brother a three-year-old they would name
Joshua it was exciting but there were signs that the road ahead might be Rocky we did see the anger but it could be
explained certainly a child arriving to a new culture a new family you know leaving her home that's the only thing
she's ever known back in the United States the family settled into a brand new home in a comfortable suburb of
Atlanta a short commute to Jesse's computer engineering job we tried to make it very homey for her
and happy he's a little princess Daddy tried to give her everything we thought a little girl should have but the
beautiful little girl was having big problems as soon as we brought her home she was very very withdrawn and
isolating didn't cry at all but just very angry it was nothing they thought a little love couldn't fix
I spent all the time with her I quit my job I gave her 100 of me it wasn't working they say off camera she started
acting badly she just began becoming very destructive then the unthinkable happened
on carolee's second Christmas in America things seem to have started off caroly's got a new bike and we were
learning how to ride it she had never ridden one before I really thought that everything was
going great it was not long after when Crystal heard the horrible sound so I was over planting and I heard Josh was
screaming crystal says that's when she first saw Carolee holding her four-year-old
brother Joshua over the railing of the 30-foot High deck she had him yes yes over the side here yes
this wasn't rough housing no her face there was anger and hate crystal says that moment changed everything I'm gonna
kill him she said um why why mad at him what did he do he's getting on my nerves
I said you would kill him for trying to get on your nerves certainly you don't mean it you don't mean kill him and she
said yes I do but can you do this we asked Joshua about it are you afraid of Carol Lee yes because
she tried to throw out for that because she tried to throw you off the desk that's why I'll forever
[Music] are you worried that she's going to do something to you right now because she's
not mommy's here Crystal and Jesse's relationship with Carole Lee was in free fall after the incident involving Joshua
on the Family's 30-foot outdoor deck she started telling me you know I'm hearing
voices and I'm seeing things she says when the voices tell her to do something she has
to do it or they'll hurt her and the voices she said told her to kill him she was hallucinating that she was seeing
snakes the couple had her admitted to a psychiatric hospital spent almost four months under constant
care before Crystal and Jesse say their insurance started running out and they were forced to bring Carol Lee back into
their home again this is what you see yes she's repeated this for months on multiple occasions if I get another
chance I will kill him and she told us that too try to um call Joshua so they're installing an elaborate
security system so you have cameras installed at various points in the house yes in the living room her bedroom her
bathroom Cara Lee is forbidden to be alone with Joshua is he safe no that's on me I had to get help that's
why you have to get out she is a risk to the family members Dr Brian Kennedy was one of the
psychiatrists who saw Carolee she's got a tremendous amount of rage and anger that she's hidden inside her there's
clear evidence of a clinical depression there is definitely clear evidence of an
attachment disorder um now there may be other developing psychiatric difficulties such as bipolar
illness or schizophrenia she was given heavy medication but they say the medications aren't
working I'm gonna get you the best help you can okay it's gonna be all right you love her but you're frightened of
her yes the anger that she has focused towards Joshua is like something I've never seen before
four-year-old boy should never have to ask their parents the question why did my sister try to kill me
but since being home from the psychiatric hospital there's already been another frightening incident they
say Carolee tried strangely the family dog Aurora we woke up at three in the morning and Aurora was hung from her
collar with the leash tied to a Poe I'll go go to my grandma's today so Joshua's
being sent 600 miles away to live at his grandmother's house in Texas why do we have to send him to Grandma's to keep
him safe because I may hurt him just imagine you think you're bringing a bright girl to your home but no one's
told you that they're sociopathic and they have no conscience in fact they say the agency that
arranged carolee's adoption the Frank Foundation told them the opposite Carol Lee is mostly nice she's open she's
tender she's obedient she's friendly nothing in that sentence would lead you to question wow could there be you know
a tremendous variety of hidden medical issues here it was a glowing report except for one thing they did say she
was a ligophrenic translated then as mental retardation but the couple says they asked about it and we're told not
to worry they stated that it was developmental delay just slow to learn and we were assured that this job was
healthy and that in a good home with proper nutrition with the best of doctors in America helping her with the
developmental issues that she should be fine only after the adoption was official
Crystal and Jesse say did the Frank Foundation provide them with more documents that revealed troubling things
about carolee's past says the mother was amoral and anti-social you know these types of words are very loaded they
carry a lot of psychological meaning the new documents described how caralee's birth mother left her dirty
hungry and in rags Crystal and Jesse believed the mistreatment had a lasting effect on Carolee
when I dreamed of adopting a little girl this was not my dream we would not have adopted the child you
would not have adopted her no we would not have and as they continued digging into
Curley's past they found out more officials at the orphanage say currently was in a special dorm for children with
mental disabilities critical information the couple says the adoption agency failed to share with them you didn't
hide any information never and why would it back then Nina castina a Russian emigre ran the Frank Foundation
she set the medical information she received was limited by Russian privacy laws but adopt the parents once in
Russia can get anything they need once the parents are in the orphanage they have access to any medical records
to do to the doctors to anything and this is their time when they should ask any questions
so it's their fault I'm not telling food I'm telling that this is their obligation this is
Lifetime decision they should do it while they're in the orphanage when we first cover the story more than two
decades ago Nina castina said that no information happened with hell from the family
but at the time 48 Hours spoke with eight families who adopted through the Frank foundation and they all said they
had received inaccurate medical information their children had been diagnosed with illnesses like fetal
alcohol syndrome hepatitis C brain tumors and a slew of psychological problems they claim the Frank Foundation
didn't prepare them for three of the families who spoke with sued but lost Crystal and Jesse feel like they're out
of options so as Joshua leaves for the safety of his grandmother's home in Texas oh I'm
gonna miss you so much they make a painful decision we cannot continue to be your parents
they say the only way their son can return home is to send Kara Lee away forever we've been here every day loving
her nurturing her helping her we couldn't save her [Music] time to go get your picture made dearly
she has so many psychological problems what we're going to do is we can get your picture made today she is a danger
to society but more than that she's a danger to our son so you still like to get your picture
taken after all this time the fact of the matter is that we cannot be her parents anymore one two three
Crystal and Jesse are about to do something that's difficult to imagine honey did you want to see us they are
taking Carolee back to Russia and China there are parents out there that will not be able to understand what you're
about to do if I hadn't I might have been the very same thing that I expect to hear from them why how could you do this
how could you do this it's a long trip you need skeptic color there must be a family somewhere in America that would
adopt her we thought that there would be a family out there how are you today and
we've actually spoken to a few families in every case so far after reviewing the
medical information she tried to throw my son off a very high deck they've said thanks but no thanks they have told
Carol Lee they're taking her to a new hospital how are they going to stay in there but she has no idea it's a
psychiatric hospital in Russia this 12 year old girl has been abandoned by her birth parents and now her adoptive
parents are also rejecting her well it's not a case of her adoptive parents rejecting her but that's when she's
going it's going to be okay of her adoptive parents not being able to care for her
what's wrong honey but you have to understand psychiatrist tells that Carolee has no bonding no affection
I think the best thing in the world for her is a good night's sleep I do too so Carolee most likely will just move on
it looks cruel to me cruel and not thoughtful Nina castina the woman who arranged carolee's adoption is
distraught over the decision I feel very sorry for her for her part she questions
whether Kara Lee is even that sick they say that she tried to kill her little brother
this is what they say she tried to kill the family dog she's extremely violent that's what they say yes do you believe
it that's what they say psychiatrist Brian Kennedy says Carolee suffers from attachment disorder in effect an
inability to love and that he says makes her dangerous it's hard for me to digest
because when I look at her she seems like a very sweet little girl and smiles and laughs she does love to smile and
laugh and I think in certain situations that are non-stressful for her she presents as a very amiable child but I
think when you look at what she's been through and when you see how she functions under stress she can become
very different and have very significant rage she has thought about killing her brother she has tried to kill him and
she could not give me assurances that she wouldn't kill him others who treated Carolee had concerns as well but at
least one psychiatrist had another opinion after treating Cara Lee he wrote carolee's Behavior was impeccable he
said the staff perceive that Chris and Jesse were too often cool and distant towards their daughter and that Carolina
times appeared to be frightened by her interactions with them Carolee is a very different person when you really get to
know her it took me a year and a half to break through the facade they have made up their minds Cara Lee
must return to Russia [Music] the doctors in America have told me that if she returns home she will kill my son
I believe them she's already tried it once it's very strong possibility she'll try it again
with success they tapped into their life savings to bring Cara Lee here to be treated by Russian doctors they have
worked with kids from Russian orphanages they found a bed for Carole Lee at this
children's psychiatric hospital in Moscow but they don't hold out much hope and they're now thinking about annulling the
adoption doctors suspected they were trying to abandon her and demanded copies of their passports and made them
promise to return for Carolee in two months Caroline understands that she is here to be treated by Russian
Specialists and that's all she's here for at the time but she does not understand that you will not be
returning for no that's not the case at this time the only thing we're stating is that she's here for a diagnosis and
an evaluation but Carolee senses something is terribly wrong they told me that they love me and everything after
them I love them very much [Music] but didn't believe me then just a few minutes before she'll enter the hospital
Carolee tells me something she's never told me before I did not try to kill other that she never tried to kill her
brother Joshua you didn't try to kill Joshua you're telling me the truth cause he was too heavy Carol Lee says it
was all a big misunderstanding I love him I'm a dad interested but there's no turning back you've
pursued every possible Avenue and this is the only thing you can do this is this is the only thing we can do
honey Crystal and Jesse left her there days later I returned with a hidden camera and visited Carolee hey guys now
in a locked Ward I'm the same stay here she was frightened America I'm scared staying here but
Crystal and Jesse have made a final decision getting ready back to the airport it's been a long trip good oh
USA they're not bringing Carolee back [Music] hey the last time I saw Carole Lee was
in Russia more than 20 years ago she was terrified she was in a locked ward in a
children's psychiatric hospital the door slam Shack and I wasn't sure if I'd ever
see her again [Music] over the years we've repeatedly tried to find her I always wondered how she was
doing if she was thriving if she was happy [Music] many years passed she was in my thoughts and in my heart
hey oh my gosh and finally she got in touch with me now she calls herself Sabrina look at
you and is married with four children what have you been doing over the last 21 years making babies so beautiful we
met near her home in North Carolina we have a lot to catch up on yeah I had a thousand questions for Sabrina how did
she end up here what she says happened on that deck that day and what she thought went wrong with Jesse and
Crystal you like her that's it you liked him I did it was a family that said hey
I will adopt this child and I would like to give them a home and they will love me for who I am
but to Sabrina back then it seemed that Joshua was always the favorite did that create any jealousy it didn't create
jealousy I felt more down I felt like I wasn't good enough I felt like I wasn't this child that they wanted because I
was I was older I had my own feelings I already had a history you know I loved that he was
getting loved he was having a family yes it sucked for me you didn't have an emotional connection with Crystal and
Jesse because Joshua was so centered I think we lost it I think it was just lost
I was starting to become very depressed it came to the point I was very suicidal
suicidal I was very suicidal there were days I tried to attempt multiple times and I just couldn't do it
so when I started creating a story I told Crystal you know I'm seeing and hearing things are you saying something
new did you see something earlier because I want it out I I wanted out so were you hallucinating at that time no
no hearing no seeing things it's just a child trying to get out she had him in her hands and was going to throw him
over the deck and as for what happened on the deck Sabrina has a decidedly different version of events from Crystal
that she says started when Crystal asked her to get Joshua Crystal was gardening
and Joshua was screaming on top of the deck crystal said I needed to go get Joshua
trying to pick up a child that's really almost as big as you is kind of hard so I'm trying to walk down the steps just
able to hold them so he doesn't fall Crystal looked and she said put him down Carolee put him down put it
I eventually put him down and she's like you try to kill him didn't you and I said no I was trying to pick him up so
he doesn't fall because he was sliding off my hands and she's like no you were trying to kill him and she kept
saying it and saying it and I said yes so I just I finally said yes Sabrina repeated that story that she
tried to kill Joshua to everyone including me what happened that day out on the deck
you're trying to push him off the deck shy to um call Joshua what happened on that deck seemed to
take on a life of its own Crystal brought Sabrina to various doctors I went to psychiatrist as a psychiatrist
and I remember Chris to say just remember we wanted to kill Joshua I said okay I will tell him Dr Kennedy said you
were potentially schizophrenic bipolar you had homicidal Tendencies and you were a danger to this family
that's hard to hear hurt somebody it would have been done and that never happened I'm not that person I was never
that person today Sabrina says she is not on any medication and suffers from no mental illness a number of doctors
back then though seemed to think she needed help we tried to contact Dr Kennedy but have been unable to reach
him you were also accused of trying to kill the family dog I don't know where that came from
because I love that dog that's okay how did you learn that you were going back to Russia
crystal said they were running out of options and they think the Russian Institute will be
better so how is it going here not good why how did that make you feel when you're sitting there in the
hospital in Moscow waiting for them to return to pick you up and they didn't I felt so guilty
because I wanted to take care of it I wanted you to take me I was like why is nobody taking me I just bought it out
Sabrina said she cried and was frightened I feel like I was in jail but then I think of it I put myself there
you know all those lying and doing what they want me to do I put myself there then after two months it
was Nina castina from the adoption agency who arrived at The Institute Nina showed up and she brought me in clothes
she asked me if I remembered her and she took Sabrina to live with her in Virginia eventually Sabrina moved in
with a new set of parents in North Carolina I have parents they're the parents that took me in that took their
time to learn who I am and make me a better person after high school she volunteered for the non-profit Mercy
Ships and spent two years in Africa helping to provide medical care to underprivileged people loved it really I
did when she returned home in 2010 she got a job in a hospital and at church she met math teacher Phil Caldwell I
fell in love with him when I saw him interact with kids the way he was treating them how
committed he was she's just very real and very genuine and I love that about her but before she
would even consider getting engaged she insisted that Phil watched the original 48 Hours show about her early life my
heart broke for her I really couldn't believe all of the things that she had gone through I think
she expected me to run but it was the opposite reaction of what she expected me to think
they married in 2014 and now have three lovely daughters and a son fun kids love them
she's very loving and she's very caring it looks real good and I think probably what Sabrina went through has had a
greater impact on her parenting than she can see herself you go girl because she
is so amazing at it [Music] Phil recently stopped teaching and started a new job at the same hospital
where his wife works seems like you're in a really good place I am you're happy I am
but Sabrina like me has always wondered what happened to Crystal and Jesse and she says that after two decades she was
ready to find out [Music] the more of Sabrina's story and her life now at 48hours.com
after she became a mother Sabrina says she wanted Crystal and Jesse tonight she had a family of her own and she wanted
to share her side of the story she found Crystal on social media and finally hit the send button
I'd send her a message stating to her that I hope she's well and I just want to make this really clear for you I've
never wanted to hurt Joshua and I never heard or saw things in my life and how did she respond
she said she prayed that I would have a better family did you love Crystal and Jesse and
myself in their shoes I would have probably done almost the same thing but not everything
I would never take a child back still she says she Harbors no hard feelings toward them I learned to
forgive my past have an amazing husband I can't thank God enough for him I have amazing kids
but if I didn't go through what I went through I wouldn't have that Sabrina says Crystal and Jesse have
three biological Daughters of their own along with Joshua they declined our request for an interview however Jesse
said that he and Crystal were glad Sabrina's life had turned out so well and that Joshua was now a father too
hi girls in the end it appears that crystalline Jesse like Sabrina eventually found
families and happiness and as it turned out so did I don't be scared okay and my
journey started the minute I left Sabrina in Russia I cried as I was leaving then I started saying to myself you know
maybe one day I I can rescue an an older child but the timing wasn't right I was single
and as a CBS News correspondent I was still traveling endlessly then I had a story in Johannesburg South
Africa when I went to an orphanage there to make a donation I said you know what uh I'm close to 40
now I'm gonna go for it in 2003 I became certified to adopt a child and learned about a woman in
Djibouti Africa who wanted to find someone to adopt her four-year-old son [Music]
and I looked at his photo and the resemblance was uncanny this looks like my kid
I had been to Africa twice and never heard of Djibouti but that Thanksgiving I flew there to
meet this young boy and his mother his name was I noticed that his eyes danced that's
the signal that he's smart he's clever his mother was Katra she gave birth to her son after a short affair with a
French soldier and ever since then she feared for the boy's safety because he was mixed rays they were homeless and
living in abandoned building he was sleeping on the floor and so was she begging was his routine I took them to
lunch and over the course of the next two weeks I got to know them I began bonding over hamburgers and fries
and walking around on the street he spoke four languages but not English we mind it's like let's eat
you need to go home to sleep I mean that's how basic it was fortunately there was a bowling alley
and a small beach in a nearby military base we went bowling a lot with something he'd never done before we
didn't know how to swim so we took a boat to this small little Beach Island that was
reserved for the military personnel I made two more lengthy visits to Djibouti but when it came time for the
adoption there was a problem kadra never signed her name before she didn't know how to sign her name
it's your practice over and over again you know over and over again it was such a loving and selfless Act
the attorney sitting next to us said to cadra Troy will be a good father and she looked me dead in the eye and
she said time will tell my name is Jonah gray Roberts and my father is Troy Roberts
that's the street you moved on and Djibouti the whole adoption process that was four
years old there wasn't really much to tell a four-year-old you are I was just there's a man here
who's you know taking care of me who's feeding me he also did get me a tutor so I was getting education
at that age you don't really think anything about it um you're just this could be you know my
long-lost dad and then 10 months after meeting my son it was finally time to go that was an intense day
I'm thousands of feet in the air this is my first time ever on an airplane then my dad tells me oh we're in New
York City is your new home and I remember seeing my first home my first real home
and he's like this is your room it's my own bed I didn't have to share with anyone
I had a desk a place where I started studying had the tutors it was it was amazing
we did everything together so much together I really enjoyed watching him learn new
things and introducing him to A Whole New World there was never father an adopted son it
was always you know father and son and like any father I have a lot to learn from my son
who needs three monitors empty burrito refrigerating plastic what can I do and you're just stand there
every Thanksgiving we have this thing where before we start eating after I've made the full meal because he doesn't
know how to cook um would always start off by saying like what we're grateful for this year
and now when I think about Sabrina's journey and Crystal and Jessie's and Jonas and my own I realize how much we
all have to be thankful for it seems like everyone's story has a happy ending and uh
that's that's pretty cool you know [Music] two young women two unsolved murders they were both killed the same night
matching socks founded two different crime scenes now can DNA from a fast food bag finally catch the killer it was
like gold 48 Hours next on CBS and streaming on Paramount Plus

After a young girl is adopted from Russia, her American parents come to believe she is capable of murder and return her. Years later, "48 Hours" contributor Troy Roberts learns her surprising story. Watch more full episodes of "48 Hours" on Pluto TV.

Crime. Social justice. Impact. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

Brief Summary

The episode details the troubling adoption story of Carolee, revealing mental health issues and the couple's decision to return her to Russia.

Key points

A Troubling Transformation. The adopted girl shows signs of distress and aggression, alarming her new family.
The Adoption Journey. An American couple adopts a girl from Russia, hoping for a loving family.
The Unthinkable Incident. Carolee attempts to harm her brother, raising serious concerns about her behavior.
A Heartbreaking Decision. The couple decides they cannot keep Carolee, fearing for their son's safety.
A Painful Goodbye. The family takes Carolee back to Russia, leaving her in a psychiatric hospital.
Sabrina's Struggles with Jealousy. Sabrina felt overshadowed by Joshua, leading to feelings of inadequacy.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I want to feel loved and I want a family.

0:18WatchJun 6, 2023

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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